Clark Gable, often known as “The King of Hollywood”, is one of the most endearing and iconic masculine figures in Hollywood. He appeared in over 60 films over a four-decade career. The actor’s final role was an aging cowboy in 1961’s drama film, “The Misfits”, which was released after his death in 1960. Gable began his career in film as an aerial cameraman in World War II, and debuted as an actor back in the early ’20s.
One of Gable’s best films include Frank Capra’s “It Happened One Night”, a romantic comedy released in 1934. He went on to appear in a string of highly successful films during the ’30s. The actor came back with a bang after a few weak years in the late ’40s, and continued to star in many Westerns and war movies. Although he wasn’t the most beloved actor by critics, Gable always managed to make it big when it came to box-office performance. He’s considered the seventh-greatest male star of classic American cinema by the American Film Institute.
Joaquin Phoenix
Many consider Joaquin Phoenix to be the greatest method actor of our times. It doesn’t matter which Phoenix film you choose to watch, there’s almost a 100 percent chance that you’ll see a performance that would be on par with something Marlon Brando would do. Some of his most popular films include "Her", "Inherent Vice", "The Master", "Signs", "Gladiator", "The Village" and "You Were Never Really Here".
The versatile and talented actor recently took the role of Arthur, in the R-Rated drama film "Joker". It centers around a mentally unstable professional clown and stand up comedian who devolves into a psychopathic killer, DC’s infamous Batman villain, The Joker. The film broke literally every record for an R-Rated film and passed $1 billion in worldwide revenue.
Sidney Poitier
Almost no actor has influenced racial politics in the United States as much as Sidney Poitier. The Bahamian-American actor helped pave the way for many diverse actors that followed him, and helped mitigate many issues of race and racial relations, especially during the '60s. Poitier was knighted by the late Queen Elizabeth II in 1974, making him Sir Sidney Poitier. He was also awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the United States' highest civilian honor.
Poitier is one of the oldest-living actors of the Golden Era of Hollywood, and continued acting in films up until 1999. He also began directing in 1972, and released nine films throughout his directorial career. Poitier served as a member of Disney's board of directors from 1995 to 2003. He even recorded an album with composer Fred Kats, called 'Poitier Meets Plato'. While many actors on this list helped change culture and history with their films, Sidney Poitier helped do that outside the screen too.
Javier Bardem
Javier Bardem is a heavyweight Spanish actor who is known as one of the best Latin actors in Hollywood. His major breakthrough was playing Anton Chigurh in the Coen Brothers' award winning film, "No Country for Old Men". His role as the psychopathic villain in the film was considered by many to be one of the best villain roles of all time. His character was also nominated as one of number 26 in Entertainment Weekly's "50 Most Vile Villains in Movie History" list.
Despite Bardem appearing in many films over the years and doing fantastic work in all of them, nothing stands up to his magnum opus role in "No Country for Old Men". If you’re looking to see the Spanish actor at his very best, you don't need to look any further than this award-winning movie. Bardem practically stole all of the awards that year for his role. As long as you’re not too sensitive to violence, you should definitely give this one a watch.
James Dean
Back in the '50s, James Dean was considered a symbol of cultural rebellion. Unfortunately, the actor died during a car crash at just 24 years old, effectively ending one of the most promising film careers of all time. He only acted in three films, "Rebel Without a Cause", "East of Eden" and "Giant". Dean has since been branded as a social icon and is credited for much of the development of Rock and Roll music. Many musicians, such as Elvis Presley, claim to have been influenced by the actor.
His most endearing and celebrated film to date was 1955's drama film, "Rebel Without a Cause", where he portrayed Jim Stark. The film was a social rebuke of many cultural stagnations, and gave a social commentary on many of the time's traditions. The film is considered as one of the most culturally and historically influential films of all time, and has received many awards and recognition over the years.